In value for money of provincial health-care systems, British Columbia falls in the middle of the pack, providing “low-cost, low-value” services, according to a Fraser ...

In value for money of provincial health-care systems, British Columbia falls in the middle of the pack, providing “low-cost, low-value” services, according to a Fraser Institute study released this morning.

B.C.’s health care costs the second-least per capita in the country, but the study finds that in this province, you get what you pay for, as it also has one of the lowest performance rankings – which balance out to place the province fifth out of 10.

Alberta, on the other hand, has one of the highest costs but also one of the highest performance ratings.

“On a national basis, Canada’s health-care system provides very poor value for money in comparison with universal-access systems in other developed nations,” said Nadeem Esmail, Fraser Institute director of health policy studies.

“This study reveals how provinces have struck different balances between health expenditures and health system performance.

“However, some Canadian provinces clearly provide better value for money in health care than others.

The best overall value for money – balancing cost with system performance – was found in Quebec.